New Swedish Books, autumn 2019 1
23 Autumn 2019 Åsa Lind (text) b. 1958 Joanna Hel
lgren (ill.) b. 1981 Tiger, Tiger, Tiger Picture book, 3–6 years, 32 p. Publisher Rabén & Sjögren www.rabensjogren.se Rights Rabén & Sjögren Agency Åsa Bergman asa.bergman@rabensjogren.se Åsa Lind Selected works Äskil äter träd, picture book, 2015 The trilogy about Sandvargen, chapter books, 2002–2004 Selected literary awards Nils Holgersson-plaketten 2003 Kulla-Gulla-priset 2014 Bokjuryn kategori 0–6 år 2015 Joanna Hellgren Selected awards Seriefrämjandets pris Urhunden 2010 Expressens Heffaklump 2012 Snöbollen, tillsammans med Tove Pierrou 2015 Selected works Frances 1–3, graphic novels, 2009-2012 Småkrypsboll, picture book, 2015 Tiger, Tiger, Tiger It is as if Joanna Hellgren’s images for Tiger, Tiger, Tiger spring from a distant picture book past, where each page-spread was allowed to give the colours a chance to expand, interchange and transition into a multitude of nuances. Here the perspective is that of the small child. A child who has just learnt to walk and who imagines that their cat is a tiger. Not a scary one, but a tiger you want to capture and cuddle. However, already on the cover, the cat bristles. It doesn’t want to be smothered by the child’s love. Throughout the book the child chases the cat across playgrounds, and through bushes and meadows. Whilst hiding in the tall grass the cat is depicted in shades of the same colour, the only difference being that the stripes on its fur are horizontal as opposed to the diagonal grass. As such the ‘cattiger’ is camouflaged in a way that invites a sense of discovery for the small child, who is still able to see the animal. Åsa Lind’s highly poetic text, sometimes rhymed, sometimes only rhythmically charged, allows the work to form an alliance with another classic – Elsa Beskow’s iconic story of the cat in The Tale of the Little, Little Old Woman. Just like in that story this ‘cat-tiger’ returns from his escape, but not until night has fallen, not until it is possible to sneak in unseen through the open window. Photo: Göran Segeholm Photo: Liam Karlsson